Coming home for Christmas
by TivaBonesCaskett
Summary: How many times did he dream about her coming home to him? It felt like a million times and he dreamed about a lot of different scenarios. But it still felt surreal when it happened. (Chapter 1)
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Hi everyone. I am Katie, I currently moved to the US which certainly did not help my tv show addication. Sadly, Cote left the show but my Tiva heart is still alive and well, I had to write something for Christmas, so here you go. It is probably around six Chapters long, I am still working on the last two. It is just a short story but I will probably work on another one when I finished this one. I am gonna post every week til Christmas. A lot of thanks to my amazing beta Nolly-the-Lolly! :) **

It was the 24th of December and it had snowed. Washington D.C was covered in fluffy white snow and it was freezing cold outside. The clock had just ticked midnight and the team finally parted ways from Gibbs house. They had a lovely Christmas dinner and everybody seemed happy.

Everyone was there. Gibbs, Ducky, Abby, McGee and Jimmy Palmer. Jimmy even brought his wife Breena and their newly adopted son, Daniel. Delilah, McGee's girlfriend was also there and even Abby's brother made it.

Everybody talked and laughed, except Tony. He tried to fake his happiness because he didn't want to upset anyone. Nobody seemed to notice besides Gibbs and Abby who sat by his side. They all knew that it was hard for him. All of them had a loved one by their side but his loved one was far away on another continent doing God knows what.

From time to time Abby squeezed his hand under the table to reassure him that she understood his pain. Every now and then Gibbs would look at him and smile softly, trying the same thing as Abby but they both knew that that only helped him a little bit. Nobody could fill the gap Ziva left when she made him go on the airplane in Israel and fortunately nobody tried to fill it.

When they parted ways that evening, Tony drove home in his car. Lately, almost all day long his mind wandered to Ziva. He missed her especially around this time in the year where everybody spent time with their family and was happy.  
But how could he be happy when she is over a thousand miles away from him?  
He really tried to move on but he just couldn't. The only thing he wished for was her coming home to him and never leaving again.

How many times did he dream about her coming home to him? It felt like a million times and he dreamed about a lot of different scenarios. For example, her showing up in the bullpen saying "I'm back" or maybe her calling him saying that she is waiting for him at the airport, or somewhere else but it always lead to one thing: them being together for the rest of their life, living happily ever after.

Maybe that was one of the reasons he didn't really realize that she was home.

He parked his car outside his apartment and made his way upstairs. There he opened the door and went inside. As usual, he took of his shoes and his coat and placed them into the small closet next to his door. He didn't notice her coat hanging there, smelling like her, and her shoes standing neatly in a row beside his. It felt so normal, so real that he didn't think about it that much. Turning on the light, he stepped into his living room. Everything was right where it belonged: his piano with a picture of Ziva, Kate his goldfish was in her bowl doing... well doing nothing, his movie collection was neatly in line on his shelf. By the window stood his Christmas tree, lighting up the room in all the bright colors. That kind of was one of his new traditions now since his father visited him last Christmas. Under it lay some wrapped presents for his co-workers who were coming over tomorrow morning for brunch.

Maybe that was the reason why he didn't notice that someone added a present under the tree.

He went into the kitchen to get a glass of water before going to bed. He stocked up his kitchen over the year so that there was always food and enough cooking supplies for him to make himself some dinner, which he did quite often these days. Blame it on his promises to her to keep himself alive and healthy. And he kept his promise because he really hoped that she would come back one day.

Wait. Wasn't her coat hanging in his closet and her shoes standing beside his just a second ago? He froze and looked around for a moment. Nothing else indicated that she was here. Maybe he had a little bit too much to drink. Going back and looking again wasn't an option. He was way too afraid that he just dreamed it, like he did a million times before.

After he finished his water, he made his way into the bathroom. Standing in front of the mirror, he saw another toothbrush in his cup, right next to his own toothbrush. Slowly, he opened his small cabinet and saw a little make-up bag standing inside it along with some creams and a hair brush.

Shaking, he took a deep breath and looked to his shower. Next to his towel hang another one and suddenly his shower contained a big selection of different products for hair, face and body. Not believing what he sees, he made his way to the new towel and smelled it.

All of the sudden it hit him. She was here. This was definitely her very own scent and there was no way that he was dreaming right now. The towel was still a bit wet and he looked into his small cabinet again just to make sure everything was still there.

His heart started to race as he made his way towards his bedroom, where she had to be. She wasn't in the kitchen or in the bathroom, nor was she in the living room, so she had to be in his bedroom.  
He slowly opened the door to see his big new king-sized bed. He bought it right after he came back from Israel because he hoped that he would wake up one day and she would be lying right beside him and everything that happened in Israel was just a dream.

That didn't happen until now.

There in the middle of his bed lay Ziva, tucked in under his covers sleeping peacefully.

His mind raced and he stood in the doorway frozen, unsure what he should do next. Should he wake her up? Should he just leave her there and sleep on the couch? Should he lay beside her and pull her into his arms and never let her go again? Yes! Yes, that's the only thing that he could do right now. His heart ached for her and he couldn't stay away from her any longer. Quickly, he got rid of his pants and his shirt so that he was only wearing a t-shirt and his boxers. Carefully, not to wake her up, he made his way under the covers and scooted closer to her until he could bury his face in her soft, brown curls and put his hand on her arm.

He still couldn't believe that she was right beside him. All he wished for was actually coming true. She was in his arms, right by his side. Deeply inhaling her scent, he took a shaky breath and tried to calm down when he felt her stir slightly, waking up.

Her eyes opened slowly and she snuggled closer to him as if that would be the most normal thing to do. Slowly, she turned her head to him and looked at him with those beautiful brown eyes he missed so much. She lifted her hand and gently stroked his cheek. A small smile appeared on her face and she whispered "Merry Christmas, Tony"

A single tear escaped his eyes and she whipped it away softly. He was just so happy that he couldn't say anything right now. He pulled her closer and rested his forehead against hers.  
"I am so sorry, Tony. For all the trouble, the worries and problems I caused you. I did not want that, but I needed to get my life in order again. I had to deal with what happened but I am ready now," she told him quietly still stroking his cheek.

He caught her hand with his and pressed a tender kiss into her palm assuring her that she didn't need to apologize for what she did because as upset as he was, he understood her decision. When he left her at the airport, he knew that if she would come with him right that minute, she wouldn't be completely happy. That didn't mean that he missed her less.

But he accepted that he had to wait for her. And he did, and now she was here again. That was all that counted now.

Finally, he found his voice again.

"I love you, Ziva. I love you so much," he murmured more calmly now looking deeply into her eyes.

"I love you too, Tony" she replied happily because she could finally say it out loud.

Gently, their lips met for the first passionate and loving kiss, since they parted ways three months ago. After a few seconds they broke apart and Tony placed small, soft kisses all over her face which made her giggle quietly.

She yawned and moved closer to him, resting her head on his chest and tangling her legs into his.

His arms found his way around her as if it would be something they did his whole life long. He pulled her even closer and after a minute they both found a position they were comfortable sleeping in.

Ziva drifted to sleep not long after that. She had to be really tired but Tony couldn't sleep at all. All he could think about was that Ziva was finally back home and tucked safely into his arms. He had a million questions for her but the main reason he was afraid to fall asleep is his fear of her leaving again.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Hello everyone! It's Tuesday and time for another update. Maybe I am gonna upload the next one on Friday, but only if I get some good reviews! :) This story follows the cliche of most of the Tiva stories, I just couldn't resist. Oh, and I am looking for a new beta reader because my old one (Nolly-the-Lolly, I still really like you, you were on of the best! Check her out!) is kinda of busy right now which I totally understand. So, if anyone wants to beta the last two chapters of the story, please fell free to write me! :)**

The day was silently dawning and the room was slowly filled up with light when Ziva awoke. She snuggled closer to the warmth that surrounded her, inhaling the scent she missed for so long. His scent. Sleepily, she opened her eyes looking up to him.

It seemed that he finally found some rest because she knew that he stayed awake for quite some time last night. She may have been asleep but she felt him moving around for a long time but now he seemed peaceful.

They were still in the same position as yesterday when they fall asleep. Her head was lying on his chest and his arms were still possessively wrapped around her, holding her close to him.

She couldn't be happier because now that she actually found peace with herself, she could finally live the life she wanted. The life of which she dreamed of her whole life. There was someone that loved her unconditionally, there was her family who would hopefully take her in their circle again, and she had her friends who hopefully didn't forget her yet.

She found faith in herself, faith that she could be loved, even more important that she deserves to be loved. She managed to let go of her past realizing that she could never change what she did all those years ago. She couldn't bring back any of the people she killed, and remembering her 'I will'- list she finally noticed that the only thing she could do about her misery, was at least let herself be happy. And without even noticing it, she made at least five more people happy. After becoming aware of that all she wanted to do, was go home.

And here she is now, lying in the embrace of her loved one.

A small smile appeared on her face as she looked up to Tony seeing that he was still sleeping. He would probably still be asleep for a while, so she decided to sleep some more herself.

When he opened his eyes, it was already light and the sun was shining into the room. Feeling a warm body pressed against his, he realized that he didn't dream this time. She was back. She was back lying in his arms and all he could think about right now was one thing - he would never let her go again.

It didn't take long for her to wake up and a small shiver ran down his spine when he looked into her brown eyes.

"Merry Christmas and welcome home, my love" he whispered softly pressing a kiss to her forehead. She smiled one of those beautiful smiles of hers and it felt like he would melt away any second. His heart started to race again. It felt like he was falling in love with her all over again.

"Merry Christmas to you too, Tony" she said quietly returning his gesture by pressing a gentle kiss to his lips. It was his turn to smile now.

"You know that I won't let you go again, right? I will never let you out of my arms again because I went through hell and back worrying that you might not come back to me." Tony stated honestly waving his fingers through her brown curls.

"I do not intend to leave again, Tony. I assure you that you are stuck with me for the rest of your life now. The moment I realized that I deserved to be loved, I just wanted to come home to you and be with you." Ziva confessed drawing patterns on his chest.

Carefully, he lifted her chin up and made her look into his eyes.

There were no words needed anymore because their emotions got the best of them. Their lips met in a passionate kiss, which soon got really heated.

It was already 10 o'clock and Tony and Ziva were still lying in bed. Nobody said a word; they were just content to lay in each other's arms.

"We have to get up now, the team is coming in an hour and a half and I still have to make some food for them." Tony informed Ziva making the first step of leaving the bed. "Although, I am not sure if I want to get up now." Tony said after some seconds, in which they still didn't move.

"I think we need to get up, Tony. I am getting hungry and as you said the others are coming soon and I still would like to take a shower. I mean I didn't see them for almost half a year. I am sure they appreciate a good smelling version of me and not some sweaty looking person ..." Ziva replied sitting up. "And I have to give you your Christmas present before the others come."

"I get another present? You being back is the best present I could ever ask for. I don't need anything else, trust me on this one, darling." He assured her, pressing a kiss to her temple.

"Well, you have to trust me on this one. You are gonna be beyond happy." Ziva whispered sweetly, pressing a kiss to his cheek, standing up and going into the bathroom.

Tony sighed and got also up. He went into the kitchen and started to make coffee. After that he made them some bread and cut some fresh strawberries. He heard the hair dryer in the bathroom, so he decided to get everything ready for when the team would arrive.

Twenty minutes later, Ziva came into the kitchen wearing a dress to his surprise. Her hair was falling smoothly down her shoulders and she looked absolutely beautiful.

"Are these strawberries, Tony?" Ziva asked surprised, standing herself next to him putting a hand on his arm.

Tony looked at her amused. "Yes, these are strawberries, Ziva. I kept my promise. Just look into the fridge. I changed my eating habits. I almost always cook myself something healthy when I come home from work and don't eat that much takeout anymore" he confessed slightly embarrassed.

Wrapping her arms around him, she leaned against him. "I should have believed you when you said that you would change with me. Instead I made you go home alone ..." She bowed her head ashamed of herself.

"No, Ziva." Tony interrupted her sitting her on the counter. "Don't say that. You needed time for yourself. I understand that and it was hard to just leave you there but I get it. I do, Ziva. Don't worry about it" He gave her a sweet kiss on the forehead and looked deep into her eyes. "You look beautiful today. This new style suits you well"

Ziva smiled slightly. She was wearing a dark blue dress which hugged her just until the waist and then fall smoothly down ending above her knees. On top of that she wore a simple white cardigan to keep her warm. Now, that she was not working as an agent or an officer anymore, she could finally wear dresses without worrying that she would have to change because she had to go to a crime scene or something like that.

"Are you ready for your Christmas present?" Ziva asked after a little while.

"Sure. Where is it?"

Ziva hopped of the counter, took his hand and pulled him over to the sofa. After he sat down there, she went to the Christmas tree and picked up a small present. Smiling brightly she sat down next to him. "Merry Christmas, Tony"

Carefully, Tony took the present from her and sat it down in his lap. He started unwrapping it and seconds later he was holding a medium sized box in his hands. His eyes found hers for a few seconds and she assured him to continue opening his present. Taking a deep breath, he slowly opened the box.

"Ziva ..." He held his breath and quickly looked up to her. She was literally beaming at him.

The first thing he took out of the box, was a little pink onesie with the words 'daddy's little girl' printed on top of it. Still not believing his eyes, he picked up a frame with an ultrasound picture. He saw Ziva's name printed in the corner of it together with a small note that said 12 weeks.

Tears were forming in his eyes and he looked at Ziva again.

Tenderly, she took his face in her hands wiping away his tears. "You are going to be a daddy in 6 months, Tony. I guess one night is all it takes after all"

Tony chuckled quietly and pulled her into his arms. "I can't believe it, Ziva. All I wished for became true in less than a day. You came back to me and we are having a baby. I mean that is crazy. In six months, we are going to have a little baby keeping us awake at night"

Now it was Ziva's turn to laugh. "That is true, my love"

Gently, Tony laid her on the sofa and lifted up her dress. He softly caressed her belly which you could barely notice. But it was there.

"And here I thought you gained some weight because of the good food you ate on your journey." He pressed a light kiss to her belly which made Ziva smile lovingly. "But in reality, we got you, my little baby girl. I love you"

"We love you too, Tony. And I promise you, I will never leave you again."


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: You guys are awesome! I am still looking for a beta reader for the last two chapters so if anyone would like to do that, feel free to write me! I am going to the airport now for my free day vacation which is why this author note is pretty short! Have fun! :) **

It was 11 o'clock and Tony and Ziva were standing in the kitchen together preparing food for the brunch.

"You will never finish preparing this lasagna, if you keep staring at me, Tony." Ziva chuckled looking over to him.

"I can't help it, Ziva. You look absolutely beautiful and you just came back. I think I am allowed to stare a little bit." Tony replied smiling at her, trying to focus on making the lasagna now.

Ziva shook her head and went over to him. Gently, she wrapped her arms around his waist and laid her head on his back. "I guess, I should allow you that. I was gone for quite some time and just so you know. I missed you like crazy too. However, I visited your grandmother which was quite lovely" Ziva answered honestly.

"You did what? You visited my nonna?" Tony asked surprised turning around to her.

"I visited your grandmother, Tony. She is really lovely and we had a lot of fun. She told me a lot about you and she made me realize that it was time to come home to you. By the way, she told me to say hi and congratulations that you finally started a family." Ziva told him giving him a kiss on the cheek before she went back to cutting carrots.

Still bluffed, Tony looked at her and replied, "I think you have a lot to tell me about. Where else have you been? Did you visit my father too?"

Ziva looked at him again unsure whether he was angry or just curious. "No, I just went to Italy and I knew your grandmother was living there because you told me about her. She sounded interesting and maybe I knew that if I would go to her, she would make me realize that I needed to go home. I just needed someone to give me a little nudge. So, don't be angry, just call her and thank her."

Tony nodded and turned around to finish his lasagna. He still wasn't sure what to think about it but he didn't say anything else about it.

It was 11.30 am and the doorbell rang. Nervously, Ziva looked over to Tony. She was unsure what the rest of the team would say to her coming back.

Tony squeezed her hand assuring her that everybody was going to be happy for her and more importantly for them. "Just stay here, I am gonna open the door."

Ziva kept sitting on the sofa while Tony went to the front door. Soon, the noises of at least four people were heard. It was just her luck that everybody was coming at the same time.

"Come on in, guys. I have a surprise waiting for you." Tony said cheerfully and shortly everybody was standing in the living room.

Slowly, Ziva stood up and turned around to them looking at their surprised faces. Tony went over to her and put his hands on her shoulders. In front of them stood Gibbs, Abby, McGee and Delilah looking rather surprised and shocked at her.

"Ziva ..." Abby whispered, first hesitating for a second but then going over to her, hugging her close. "I missed you so much, Ziva! Promise me never to leave like that again!" After saying that she hugged her even closer if that was possible at all.

"I missed you too, Abby. And I am sorry that I just left like that. It was rather unexpected and I did not intend to hurt so many people with that." Ziva explained loosening Abby's embrace. Carefully, she took a step back to Tony feeling his calming presence behind her. Not two seconds later his hands were on her shoulders again making sure that everybody knew not to mess with her.

The next one that moved was Delilah. She stretched out her hand. "Hi, I am Delilah, Tim's girlfriend. It is nice to finally meet you. I heard a lot about you."

"It is nice to meet you too." Ziva replied friendly shaking her hand.

Everybody looked at McGee expecting him to go next but he didn't move. He just stood there and looking disappointed at Ziva.

"Tim, it is nice seeing you again. I missed you." Ziva tried to break the silence that was hanging in the room but Tim didn't react to that. He kept looking disappointed at her.

Anxiously, Tony looked at McGee trying to bring him to say something but it didn't work. It was Gibbs who broke the silence. He went over to Ziva and pulled her into his arms. "I missed you, Ziver. I am glad you're home now."

Sighing with relief, Ziva sank into his arms and buried her face in his neck. She didn't even think for a second that Tim would be the one that was going to be mad at her for leaving. Maybe Abby, but not Tim. Her worst fear had come true: Someone blamed her for leaving everybody behind.

Ducky, Jimmy, Breena and Daniel arrived some minutes later and welcomed Ziva just as warmly as everyone else, excluding McGee.

Ziva sat on the sofa and was talking to Breena and Daniel. Tony looked over to her making sure that she was not looking at him right now. Then he went over to McGee and pulled him to the kitchen with him.

"What is your problem, McGee?" Tony asked angrily when they arrived in the kitchen.

Tim was looking at him shaking his head. "Don't you get it, Tony? She keeps hurting you over and over again. It is not the first time that she left you and it is not the first time that she is coming back. How can you be so sure that she is going to stay this time? What happens if she realizes after two months that she needs to have more time for herself because she still cannot deal with happiness and love? You are going to be heartbroken again and who is going to have to deal with it again? Me, because every time she leaves, you are stuck with me as your partner!"

At first, Tony was speechless and couldn't reply anything because he never thought that McGee would ever say something like that ever but he quickly gathered his thoughts, retaliating: "She is not going to leave again, McGee. How could you even say something like that? She is back for good, trust me. And how can you even say something like that. She was your partner too and she was your friend and now you just turn on her? I really can't believe you!"

Before he could say anything else, someone laid a hand on his arm. Just from the gentle touch, he knew that it was Ziva.

"It is alright, Tony. Tim has every right to be mad and angry at me. Let's face it. I left you twice and I never explained myself to him even though he is my partner too. Just as much as you are. I never really thought about that until now. But he is right." Ziva said softly, shifting her gaze to Tim now. "I am really sorry, Tim. I know that I did not realize it earlier but I get it now. I hurt you as much as I hurt Tony, when I left. Well, at least regarding our team. You are my partner too, just like Tony. And I am sorry that I just left you without saying goodbye or at least giving you an explanation. Both times. But I can promise you that I will not leave again even though I am not going to come back to NCIS. And I will not be angry at you, if you do not forgive me just now, but I hope that you can forgive me some day."

Looking to the ground, Tim nodded his head slightly which Ziva took as a good sign. She went over to him and hugged him. "I really am sorry, Tim. Tony and I were always so focused on each other that we left you out a lot of times. I just want you to know that you were a good partner and an even better friend." Ziva added quietly, giving him a kiss on the cheek.

Tim pulled her back into his arms, whispering, "You were a good partner too, Ziva. And I am sorry too, you know. It is just hard to see him suffer knowing that I couldn't do anything to make him feel better ..."

"I know, Tim. And I intend to never do that again to him. You know that I love him. You were probably the first who knew. And that's all I am going to say about that, Mr. Thom E. Gemcity." Ziva chuckled pulling out of his embrace. Tim returned her smile and looked over to Tony who just stood on the other side of the kitchen counter. He looked a bit upset so that Ziva quickly went over to him and gave him a kiss on the cheek.

"Okay, you two. I do not want you to have any hard feelings towards each other because all this had to be said but it is done now. And today is Christmas and I want to have a nice Christmas brunch now. So, please deal with it!" Ziva reminded the two.

Tim and Tony looked at each other for some seconds before they both nodded. Seeing that, Ziva smiled slightly, mentioning them to follow her into the living room.


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Hi everyone! First of all, thank you for your amazing response! :) I am really glad that you like the story and of course I hope that you will like the rest of it too. So, here we have Chapter 4 and there are going to be two more chapters after that and I am hoping to post them until the New Year! I found myself a new beta reader so everything is good again! :)  
I hope you enjoy this chapter, it is slight more about Tony's feelings but I think that it is really important too! :) **

Later, everyone was sitting at the dining table, eating and chatting happily.

Tony was sitting next to Ziva, absently stroking her thigh. He couldn't stop thinking about Ziva's journey and her visiting his grandmother. Of course, he was more than happy that she was back home with him but he just couldn't stop wondering where else she went. Was she really ready to come home to him? Or was she only coming home because of the baby? He had a lot on his mind right now and it was hard for him to enjoy the Christmas brunch.

Everyone else also seemed to avoid the topic of her journey, nobody was bold enough to ask about it. Instead, they talked about the life in D.C and everyone seemed to be okay with that.

Tony looked over to Ziva. She was following the conversation, smiling at Abby right now. She looked definitely happy and he cursed himself for doubting her return. Why was he over thinking everything when he was supposed to be happy? Was it really so hard just to be happy? Maybe it was but there was no going back now.

Taking a deep breath, he looked up and said, "I am gonna go, get the dessert." And with that he stood up, heading into the kitchen.

He was standing at the kitchen counter, putting Tiramisu in bowls when Ziva came into the kitchen. She went over to him and standing next to him.

"Is everything okay? You seem a little off." She asked him, worryingly putting a hand on his arm.

"I am fine, Ziva." Tony answered her, making her raise her eyebrows even higher.

"Well, normally when one of us says something like that it means the exact opposite. Just tell me what's bothering you." Ziva replied, gently stroking his arm.

Tony turned to her and took a deep breath. "It would have been better, if you didn't ask me that, Ziva, because you are bothering me. Blame it on McGee or don't blame it on him but right now I have like a million questions on my mind and here we are at our team's Christmas brunch, pretending to be a happy couple that just reunited. But all I can think about it is, where you have been all those months, what you did and whether you came back because of the baby or because you were ready! I just cannot stop thinking about it. I am sorry, Ziva. Maybe you had the time of your life over there but all I did was worrying where you are and if you were safe. I went through hell and back not knowing where you were. I love you, Ziva, I really do but I just cannot stop thinking ..."

Speechless, Ziva looked at him not sure what to say. She never considered hurting him so much while she found herself but apparently, she did. She had to fix it now but now was not the right time for that.

"I am sorry too, Tony. I should not have walked in like that pretending that everything is alright and I promise you that I am going to answer all your questions but right now is not the right time. We do not have to tell anybody about the baby just yet. We can figure it out together and then decided what we are going to do, alright? Just take a deep breath and take that as a promise from me. When everybody is gone, we are going to talk. I promise you." Ziva assured him calmly, kissing his cheek.

Tony looked at her for a second and then nodded his head.

"Hey, you two. Everyone is waiting for their dessert out there, so get your asses out there." Gibbs interrupted them, mentioning his head towards the dining area.

Tony left without another word and Ziva watched him with mixed feelings.

"You have to give that guy some credit, Ziver. He waited for you not knowing if and when you would come home. He hasn't realized yet that you're home for good." Gibbs defended Tony, walking over to Ziva.

Ziva looked down at her feet whispering softly. "I am realizing that now and I do not know how I should ever make it up to him."

Gibbs walked over to her and pulled her into a hug. "Just give him time and be with him. That is all he wants Ziva."

"I am pregnant, Gibbs." Ziva told him quietly leaning her head against his chest. She knew that they had agreed not to tell anybody yet but this was Gibbs and she had to get it off her chest. Tony would hopefully understand it and Ziva suspected that Gibbs already knew it.

Gibbs pressed a light kiss on her head. "He thinks you came back because of the baby."

"But I did not, Gibbs. I came back because I am ready to be with him. I am ready for this life here and the baby is just a fortunate coincidence. And do not get me wrong. I am really happy about that." Ziva defended herself.

"I know, Ziva. And I am proud of you. Just give him time, it is going to be alright." Gibbs assured her giving her a short squeeze before releasing her out of his embrace. "And now go and be with your family. No sad thoughts anymore."

Ziva smiled warmly at him and mouthed a silent 'thank you' to him before she went back into the dining area. She went to sit next to Tony and gently took his hand in hers giving it a small squeeze. She was going to make it up to him.

It was past 5pm before everyone was gone. Ziva was exhausted and she really didn't want to do anything else today. She was lying on the sofa keeping her eyes closed and enjoying the silence for a moment. Tony was in the kitchen putting the dirty dishes away. He told her to sit down for some time because he knew that she was more than exhausted. At first Ziva refused to do it but she had a pretty bad jetlag and her body betrayed her because of the pregnancy. And now she was more than glad that she listened to him.

"Are you alright, Ziva? You don't look to good." Tony asked her and sat down at the end of the sofa near her feet.

Ziva opened her eyes and gave him a small smile. "I am alright, Tony. Do not worry. I am just tired because of the jetlag and the baby. My body is betraying me."

Tony still looked worried and Ziva opened her arms to him while shifting a little bit so that he had space to lie down next to her. Tony hesitated but then moved next to her. Ziva pulled him close to her and let him lay his head on her chest. It was something she never done with anybody before but Tony was the one that needed assurance right now and she was going to give him some. Gently, she run her fingers through his hair and gave him a light kiss on the head.

"We are going to be okay, Tony. I know you need time and I am going to give you all the time in the world just like you did. And I promise you that I will not leave you again. I want this to work and we are going to make this work." Ziva whispered softly leaning her cheek against his head.

"I am sorry for being so harsh to you earlier. I just ..." Tony started but Ziva hushed him.

"No, Tony. You had every right, so do not apologize for that. Let's just move on with this. It is going to be okay." Ziva said again emphasizing her last sentence.

Tony just nodded putting his hand on her small bump gently stroking it.

Ziva sighed contently covering his hand with hers. It was going to be okay.


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: I am sorry that it took me like forever to update but I got kind of busy with all that Christmas stuff here. And boy, I have to say, Christmas in Cali is something else. Well, either way, I survived it and then I couldn't log in into my account whyever that is!  
So finally, you are going to get a new chapter! There is gonna be one more after this one and then we are offically done! :)  
So happy late Christmas everybody! Some more reviews would be lovely! :) Oh, and thanks to my new beta reader mama's-brocken-heart!**

It was December 30th and the grocery store was more than crowed. It seemed like the people were getting ready for a big storm where they couldn't leave the house for some days because everyone's shopping cart was more than just packed.

Ziva pushed her semi full cart a little further down the aisle, still looking for the right vegetables. She almost got everything except for the 'healthy stuff' as Tony would say it.

A week passed since Christmas and they finally got to a good routine that worked for both of them. It helped a lot that they didn't work together anymore because they didn't spend every minute of their day together. When Tony would come home from work, they would usually eat dinner together and talk about their days. Most of the time, Tony was really tired so that they really didn't do a lot after that. They watched movies or they would just sit on the couch and relax for some time.

Tony was slowly realizing that Ziva was home for good and they didn't have any big arguments after Christmas. They were taking it slow and it worked quite well. Ziva was now 14 weeks pregnant and you could actually see it now which was probably because Ziva was so happy about it that she only wore tight tops.

Going over her list again, Ziva finally finished collecting all the vegetables. She was just on the way to the aisle with the crackers when someone put his arm around her shoulder.  
"Hi, my lovely lady. What are you doing all alone in this crowed store?" Tony asked her and Ziva looked at him surprised.

"What are you doing here, Tony? I thought you had to work late?" Ziva asked turning to him.

"Well, we had a breakthrough and finished the case like an hour ago. Good things do happen. And you told me that you were going to go groceries shopping and I can't let my pregnant girlfriend carry all this groceries alone, right? That wouldn't be nice." Tony answered her pressing a kiss to her forehead. "How was your day, darling?"

Ziva smiled up to him, giving him a kiss on the cheek. "You are awfully cheerful, Tony. What happened to you today? Not that I mind ..."

"Honestly? I have no clue, Ziva. But I feel like I should be the one who makes dinner tonight because I think we should end the year with a nice dinner. I was thinking of taking you out for dinner but I just want it to be you and me. So what do you say? Dinner and a movie?" Tony suggested pulling her down the aisle.

"Sure, why not? Let's grab the things you need, I am almost done anyway." Ziva agreed, smiling up to him again. He slightly changed in the last two days and it was good to see that he was finally happy again. She let him push the now almost full shopping cart while she held on to his upper arm.

Half an hour later they arrived at their apartment. It was still weird to think of it as their apartment because they never actually discussed the whole moving in part, however it just happened because Ziva didn't have her apartment anymore and she just had the things she took with her to Israel. The rest was stored away in a storage locker somewhere. She asked Gibbs to do it for her but they didn't talk about it again after it.

Ziva was putting the groceries away when Tony came into the apartment with the last bag from the car.

"Ziva, please just sit down. You don't have to do it. I can do it myself, you always do it." Tony said to her, walking over to her.

"It's fine, Tony. I always do it, I am not sick, I am just pregnant." Ziva replied rolling her eyes.

"Well, I know, but I want you to relax today. You always do that stuff and I just come home and eat the dinner you cooked me, so please, sit down and relax, sweetheart. It is my turn to do the work now." Tony told her, gently pushing her into the living room sitting her on the sofa. He gave her a kiss on the head and went back to the kitchen again.

Ziva grabbed her book that was lying on the coffee table and began to read since she had nothing else to do. If he wanted to do it all by himself, she would let him. That was one thing she learned since the lived together, always let him do what he wants to do.

Almost two hours later, they were done eating and were once again lying together on the sofa. Ziva lay in front of Tony with her back and head against his chest while Tony had his arms wrapped around her, softly stroking her belly. He tended to do that every time he had the chance to and Ziva really didn't mind at all. She actually loved it because it showed how happy he was about the baby.

They were watching 'Dance with the wolves', a movie Tony liked to watch from time to time and even Ziva didn't mind it that much. It was the first time she watched it and she liked it so far.

"Ziva?" Tony whispered quietly.

"Hm?"

"I love you, and I think I finally realized that you are back here. And I am more than thrilled that we are going to have a baby. And I think I am ready to hear all about your journey now." Tony told her pulling her a little closer.

Slightly surprised, Ziva turned her head to him, giving him a look that matched her thoughts. "Alright, were should I start?"

She sat up and grabbed the remote control to turn off the movie.

"I wanna know everything, so start at the Tarmac when I left you." Tony answered sitting up as well.

Ziva flinched at the memory of that but she took a deep breath and started anyways. "Well, believe me when I say that I was as heartbroken as you were because I actually cried and I couldn't stop crying for the rest of the day. I fell asleep crying and when I woke up, I was still more than miserable. I stayed in the house for three days, most of the time I lay in the bed because it still smelled like you. But after a while I realized that I would not do me or anyone any good so I picked myself up and started my journey. I visited all the places in Israel that were important for me. I visited my aunt Nettie and some of my cousins who were really glad to see me by which I was quite surprised. That took me at least a month and aunt Nettie made me realize that my mopping around, as she put it, would never help me achieve anything I wanted. She basically kicked my ass and I started to go to place where I could create new memories. Good ones. I went to Barcelona in Spain, to Lagos in Portugal and then to a little town called Mukono in Uganda. I helped in a children's home for about three weeks until I finally made my way to Siena in Italy where I met your grandmother. I spent a week with her and she made me realize that I was pregnant with our baby. Before that I thought I had eaten something wrong but it made all sense. She is really nice and I promised her that we are going to visit her next year in spring when our baby is born. She misses you and she told me quite some funny stories about you." Ziva laughed slightly at the memory of that.

Tony listened quietly, nodding his head every now and then. "Thank you for telling me this, Ziva. It seems like you had a good time and I am gonna promise you that we are going to visit Nonna next year. I think I should call her right away to thank her for taking good care of my girlfriend and my baby girl."

Ziva smiled at him and pressed a loving kiss against his cheek. "You know that I made a Skype account for your Nonna? You can skype with her now!"

"You are unbelievable! But that is typical for her. I bet it was her idea. She always wants to be up-to-date." Tony joined in to her laughing and grabbed her laptop from the coffee table. "Let's Skype with Nonna then!"


End file.
